Julia admits feelings for Joshua

✨ I CAN SEE CLAUDINE BARRETTO AND RICO YAN ✨ pic.twitter.com/fdkUbUAOXG

— Elika Circa (@elkcrc) August 20, 2017

Joshua and Julia’s viral photo (Elika Circa/Twitter)

Joshua Garcia admitted on Monday that he has been courting his on-screen partner Julia Barretto since January, in the press conference (presscon) of their upcoming movie, “Love You to the Stars and Back.” But the young actress surprised him with her answer in the interview after.

During the presscon, Joshua was asked if he ever attempted to court Julia, in which the young actor smiled cheekily and exchanged glances with the young actress. He vaguely answered “Ngayon po. Nanliligaw (I’m courting [her] now).”

Julia said that as an actress, she has learned to prioritize her work, but in the case of Joshua courting her, she admitted that he became an important person in her life. “It’s not like nakakasagabal naman siya sa trabaho ko (he is a hindrance in my work), so I don’t see any problem. If ever, pagsabayin (I’ll have to balance),” she said.

During the presscon, it was evident that Joshua became emotional after a barrage of questions from the press about his plans with Julia and his fear of rejection, which made Julia emotional as well. Julia was seen reaching out her hand to the young actor to ease the tension. After the presscon in a separate interview, Julia established her strong bond and relationship with Joshua, further saying how she understands every bit of him.

“Lahat po naman ng pinagdaan ko alam din niya. Lahat ng pinagdaanan niya alam ko. Kaya naiintindihan ko siya. (He knows everything I have been through. I know everything he has been through. So) Kaya as much as possible, ipagtatanggol ko talaga siya (I will defend him),” she narrated.

When the media pointed out the loveteam’s frequent Instagram posts in which they seemed happy, the young actress started stuttering.

With a few more words stumbling in her mouth, “Sige na nga magiging honest na lang ako (Okay fine, I will just have to be completely honest),” she declared.

“Syempre pinayagan ko naman siya manligaw kasi may gusto naman din ako talaga sa kanya (I allowed him to court me because I like him too),” Julia confessed.

While she spoke, Joshua was seen staring, with an ear-to-ear smile, and even danced briefly beside her. The actor later on admitted that this was his first time hearing Julia’s feelings for him, “Masaya ako kasi gusto niya ko (I am happy because she likes me),” this was all the actor was able to say.

Julia however emphasized that there was no reason to rush things between them.

On an interview with Philippine Entertainment Portal (PEP) in the same presscon, Marjorie Baretto said that she trusts her daughter’s judgement and it is up to her if pursuing a relationship with Joshua is what makes her happy.

She added that if Julia likes him and if he is protective of her, she is fine with it. “Nakikita ko kasi kay Joshua very makapamilya siya eh. (I can see in Joshua that he is a family-person.) Important sa amin ‘yun na (It is important for us that) he likes being with our family, he looks like a good son,” she said.